Mizoram assembly election result today, counting of votes begin at 8 am

All eyes are on Mizoram today as the results for the assembly polls are set to come out. After the results of the four states of Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana declared, the focus on the tiny northeastern state  where counting of votes has begun at 8 am.

Mizoram had gone to polls on November 7 and counting of votes was supposed to begin on Sunday along with the four states. But, the Election Commission (EC) deferred the counting by a day as Sunday holds a special significance for the Christian-majority population in the state.

Over 80 per cent of the state's 8.57 lakh voters exercised their franchise in Mizoram. A total of 174 candidates, including 18 women, were in the fray in the 40-member state assembly. A party needs to cross the halfway mark of 21 to form a government in Mizoram.

The main players of the election -- the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF), Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) and the Congress -- contested 40 seats each. The BJP fielded candidates in 13 seats. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which contested the assembly polls in Mizoram for the first time, fought in four seats. Also, there were 17 Independent candidates.

In the 2018 assembly polls, the MNF, a constituent of the BJP-led NDA, won 26 seats, dislodging the Congress from power. The ZPM emerged victorious in eight seats while the Congress was relegated to third with just five seats, compared to 34 it won in 2013. The BJP marked its debut in the Northeastern state, winning one seat.

The Aizawl West-III constituency is also significant as Mizoram Congress chief Lalsawta is running against MNF's K Lalsawmvela and ZPM's VL Zaithanzama. Lalsawta had been the state finance minister until 2018 and had won state elections in 2008 and 2013 but lost to MNF's Robert Romawia Royte in 2018.

In Dampa, the only seat the BJP managed to win in 2018, Vanlalhmuaka, the party's state unit president, is up against MNF's Lalrintluanga Sailo, Congress's Lalhmingthanga Sailo, and ZPM's Vanlalsailova.

India Today Axis-My India exit poll has predicted a clean sweep by the ZPM in Mizoram and the party is expected to secure 28-35 seats in the 40-member assembly. The MNF, according to the exit poll, is likely to be reduced to just 3-7 seats.

The Congress, once a dominant force in Mizoram, is projected to put up a poor show and may end up with only 2-4 seats. The BJP is expected to settle at 0-2 seats, the exit poll showed.

According to the exit poll, ZPM's vote share in the assembly election is predicted to touch 49 per cent while the MNF may get a 27 per cent vote share. The Congress is likely to get 20 per cent of votes and the BJP is projected to have a 2 per cent vote share.